Self-hooking tail chain



May 28, 1963 J. K. D. YOUNG 3,091,492

SELF-HOOKING TAIL CHAIN Filed Jan. 22, 1962 2 Sheets-Sheet 1" FIG. 2.

Joseph K. D. Young y 1963 J. K. D. YOUNG 3,091,492

SELF-BOOKING TAIL CHAIN Filed Jan. 22, 1962 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INV EN TOR.

Jameph 16. D Young A TTORNE Y5 United States Patent 3,091,492 SELF-BOOKING TAIL CHAKN Joseph K. D. Young, 1713 D Ava, Douglas, Filed Jan. 22, 1962, er. No. 168,585

2 Claims. (til. 294-81) This application is a continuation-impart of my prior application Ser. No. 127,588, filed July 28, 1961, and now abandoned.

The present invention relates to a self-hooking tail chain for use in attaching a ladle eye to a hoist cable as in a foundry.

The employment of a laborer in a foundry solely to attach a hook to the bail of a ladle is expensive and wasteful of manpower, as well as subjecting the laborer to injury and excessive heat.

An object of the present invention is to provide a selfhooking tail chain which does away with the services of a laborer previously employed to hook the bail to the hoisting cable.

Another object is to provide a tail chain hook which is always in position for hooking the eye of a ladle.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a self-hooking tail chain which may be manufactured of commonly available materials and at reasonable cost.

These objects will be apparent from the drawing in which:

FIG. 1 is a front elevational view,

FIG. 2 is an end elevational view of one embodiment of the invention,

FIG. 3 is a front elevational view of a second embodiment of the invention,

FIG. 4 is an end elevational view of the embodiment shown in FIG. 3, showing it ready to tip a ladle.

With reference to the drawing in detail, one embodiment of the device of the present invention consists in an inverted U-shaped member having a horizontally dis posed bar "12 welded to the free ends of its legs 14 and 16.

A pair of chains 18 and 20 depend from the end parts of the bar 12 and their lower ends support a first or upper ring 22.

The upper ring 22 has two lower rings 24, 26 attached thereto, and clevis members 28, and 30, are hung in the lower rings 24 and 26, respectively.

From each member 28, is dependingly supported a double hook element 32 having its midpart rockably supported in the adjacent clevis member 28' or 30 by a bolt 34.

Each hook element 32 has two arms 36 and 38 arranged as a wide inverted V and each terminating in an upwardly open hook 40. The arms 36 and 38 constitute shanks for the hooks and are disposed at an angle greater than 90 and preferably at approximately 135 from each other, or three-eighths of the circumference of a circle.

In use, when the member 10 is hooked to the free end of a hoisting cable and the chains 18 and 20* are brought up against the side of a ladle, the arms 36 and 38 will position themselves so that either one or the other hook 40 will be in position to engage the eye on the backside of the ladle, permitting the maneuvering of the ladle as desired by the crane operator.

When not in use, the device of the present invention may be disengaged from the hook on the crane hoist by lowering the member 10* over a pair of spaced blocks of a height suflicient to support the bar 12 and member 10. The blocks are not here illustrated as not being a part of the present invention.

In the second embodiment of the invention, hook means 50 is pivotally supported at and balanced about pivot pin "ice 51 carried in clevis 52. Two chains 53 and 54 connect the clevis to spaced pins 55 and 56 in the bar 57. It will be seen that the chains are connected to the clevis at less widely spaced points 58, 59-, so as to resist twisting of the clevis relative to the bar 57. It will also be noted that the clevis constrains the hook member to swing in a single plane relative thereto. A rigid eye member '60 is fixed to the bar 57, and two pairs of stabilizing arms 61 and 62 are connected between the bar 57 and the chains 53 and 54 respectively. When the tail chain is swung against the ladle side, the stabilizing arms will automatically align the chains 53, 54 and bar 60 in a vertical plane approximately parallel thereto and this will automatically align the hook means in a plane perpendicular thereto, so as to facilitate the engagement of one of the hooks on the hook means 50 in the eye 63 of the ladle 64. When no stabilizing arms are provided, proper alignment may be secured by swinging against the side of the ladle either the bar 57, or the portion of the chains just below the bar.

What is claimed is:

1. A device for connecting a hoist chain to a ladle bail, said device comprising hook means for engaging said bail, said hook means comprising two hooks provided with elongated shanks which are rigidly connected together at an angle greater than suspension means pivotally connected to said hook means at a pivot point near the connection between said hook shanks and supporting said hook means for relative swinging motion in a single plane, said hook means being equally balanced about said pivot point, a pair of flexible connecting means attached at spaced points to said suspension means, an elongated rigid bar to which said flexible connecting means are likewise attached at more widely spaced points, said flexible connecting means, bar, and suspension means outlining a substantial trapezoidal area, so that said suspension means is flexibly restrained against twisting relative to said bar when suspended therefrom, rigid means attached to said bar and defining therewith an eye adapted to receive a hook attached to said hoist chain, and rigid stabilizing arms fixed to each of said chains intermediate its ends, and to said elongated bar, said stabilizing arms projecting transversely with respect to the longitudinal axis of said bar.

2. A device for connecting a hoist chain to a ladle eye, said device including an assembly comprising suspension means and hook means pivotally carried by said suspension means for swinging movement in a single plane, said hook means having elongated shank means and being balanced about its pivotal connection to said suspension means so that said shank means projects laterally away from the vertical when said hook means is suspended from said suspension means, an elongated rigid bar, substantially rigid means fixed to said bar for receiving the book of a hoist chain, and flexible means connecting said suspension means to longitudinally spaced points on said bar and biassing the assembly comprising said hook means and suspension means to a position in which said shank means extends transversely with respect to said bar when said assembly is suspended beneath said bar.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,535,022 Jenkins Apr. 21, 1925 2,077,630 Lane Apr. 20, 1937 2,622,540 Stewart Dec. 23, 1952 2,721,757 Anderson Oct. 25, 1955 

2. A DEVICE FOR CONNECTING A HOIST CHAIN TO A LADLE EYE, SAID DEVICE INCLUDING AN ASSEMBLY COMPRISING SUSPENSION MEANS AND HOOK MEANS PIVOTALLY CARRIED BY SAID SUSPENSION MEANS FOR SWINGING MOVEMENT IN A SINGLE PLANE, SAID HOOK MEANS HAVING ELONGATED SHANK MEANS AND BEING BALANCED ABOUT ITS PIVOTAL CONNECTION TO SAID SUSPENSION MEANS SO THAT SAID SHANK MEANS PROJECTS LATERALLY AWAY FROM THE VERTICAL WHEN SAID HOOK MEANS IS SUSPENDED FROM SAID SUSPENSION MEANS, AN ELONGATED RIGID BAR, SUBSTANTIALLY RIGID MEANS FIXED TO SAID BAR FOR RECEIVING THE HOOK OF A HOIST CHAIN, AND FLEXIBLE MEANS CONNECTING SAID SUSPENSION MEANS TO LONGITUDINALLY SPACED POINTS ON SAID BAR AND BIASSING THE ASSEMBLY COMPRISING SAID HOOK MEANS AND SUSPENSION MEANS TO A POSITION IN WHICH SAID SHANK MEANS EXTENDS TRANSVERSELY WITH RESPECT TO SAID BAR WHEN SAID ASSEMBLY IS SUSPENDED BENEATH SAID BAR. 